It is a weak wood, with low decay resistance and moderate dimensional stability. The major use of gaboon is in the manufacture of plywood. It is about 8- 12% lighter than the other main marine plywood, meranti, that is commonly used in boatbuilding, but is not as stiff.
This is useful when a boat design calls for tight-radius bends, such as near the bow in a single chine design, because of its flexibility.
However, it does not resist impact damage as well as meranti. It is often sheathed in epoxy resin to increase strength and give more impact and abrasion resistance, and to increase water resistance over conventional marine enamel paints.
It is often used in sandwich construction using the West (and other similar) epoxy system.